TRANSFORM YOUR EMUNAH!

419 - Emunah Fundamentals (Part-2)

We've been discussing how constant repetition about the principles of Emunah and Bitachon is of paramount importance. In the world that we live in, for the most part, it is much easier to relate to things that are physical and tangible, and I am able to see the accomplishment of my efforts. So, usually when I study a subject, once I have completed learning and perhaps remembering the information that I have studied, I am now able to move on to the next subject. Whereas when it comes to Emunah, our core purpose in this world, although certainly we do have to learn the information as a starting point, but by no means does it end there. The real work of Emunah is taking the information that we might have learned many many times previously and trying to truly internalize that information to be able to live according to their values. 
So let's go ahead now and discuss some of the concepts that we've discussed many times previously with the objective of not only reminding ourselves about this information, although that too is a worthwhile endeavor, but perhaps to make an extra effort to take whatever information and growth that we might have made whilst being exposed to Emunah and Bitachon and to try and apply it to areas of our own lives, everyone in their own way. So the very first question that needs to be discussed is if I believe that there is a God, a Creator, a Being who is certainly not limited by needs such as the ones we have, the question is why did Hashem decide to create this world in the first place? Anyone who has studied any Torah information about God understands that Hashem is completely independent of anything else that exists in the entire universe and in existence in general. And that being the case, why did Hashem decide to create the entire universe, with all the spiritual worlds as well as the physical world that we live in? 
Just as an aside, the question that we are discussing here is certainly the most important question for anybody that accepts that there is a Creator. There are many ways that people arrive at this conclusion, that there is a Hashem overseeing our world, and our discussion here does not revolve around proof for the existence of Hashem, although that is certainly a worthwhile discussion in its own right and there is much information available for a person who is sincerely seeking, but has many questions about the existence of Hashem in general. But assuming that one has accepted that there is a God in the world, that Hashem does exist, then the most important question that needs to be delved into becomes, why did Hashem, a being who does not lack anything, decide to create the world? It almost seems superfluous to do such a thing. Imagine for a moment the wealthiest person in the world, a multi-billionaire, who has everything financially available to him. Would it make sense for this individual to be involved in a project that would only produce him one dollar? Of course, it is easy to understand why he would not do so, seeing as he has all the money in the world available to him. And similarly, why would Hashem decide to create a world when He does not lack anything and does not need anything? 
And although we are trying to illustrate this point with this analogy of the billionaire, however truthfully this does not portray the concept of how Hashem does not need anything. Because since we are human beings, by definition, we have needs, and although a billionaire might not need another dollar, but the extra dollar might nevertheless bring a slight smile to his face and the like, whereas when it comes to Hashem, He is completely perfect and does not need this world in the least. So that being the case, why did Hashem create this world? And again, although we might have explored this topic many times previously, it is so worthwhile to go over it again and again, to digest the concept, not just to know the information, but to truly internalize the information and b'ezrat Hashem, thereby be able to truly internalize the information, live according to their values, and transform your life.

418 - Emunah Fundamentals (Part-1)

Usually, when one is trying to study a subject, after a certain amount of time of delving into the content of the subject matter, one will be able to master that subject and move on to a different topic. We've discussed many times about what the Torah's sources teach us is our purpose in this world - to make efforts to build and internalize our emunah and bitachon - our faith and reliance on Hashem more and more each day.
And in a sense, one might ask, "I've learnt about this topic so many times, so why do I need to continue to delve into the topic of emunah each day? Is it not perhaps time to move on to something else?" It is so important to remind ourselves of what many of the Torah greats teach, that although in a sense one is able to graduate from knowing the information about emunah and bitachon, because after continuous study, one will certainly gain much information from the Torah about what it means to live a life of emunah and bitachon, but as many of the Torah greats point out, when we are taught that our ultimate purpose in this world is emunah and bitachon, it certainly does not just mean knowing the information of emunah and bitachon, but rather, as they teach, the distance between just knowing emunah in one's head, as opposed to truly internalizing it in one's heart, is greater than the distance between heaven and earth. 
Just like we can clearly understand that there are miles and miles apart between the highest heavens and the earth that we live on, in a similar vein, when it comes to emunah, although it is certainly a tremendous accomplishment to be making an effort to learn the information of what it means to have emunah, because without knowing the information we certainly can't move forward to try to internalize that information, but it's also so important to highlight that ultimately our purpose in this world is not just to know the emunah in theory, but rather, our purpose in this world is to take that information and truly transform the way that we live to be according to the values of emunah and bitachon.
And as we've discussed many times, it's an obvious equation that it's not going to be an easy task that can be mastered overnight. Because as many commentaries that we've discussed, such as the Ramban at the end of Parashas Bo bring to our attention that our main focus and job and purpose in this world is to grow in our bitachon. And as we've pointed out many times from many many Torah sources, that ultimately the purpose of all the mitzvos, of Torah learning and everything we do in our lives is in order to build our emunah. Emunah is the core of everything we do in our lives. So seeing as this is the ultimate purpose for our existence and our focus of what we're supposed to be doing in this world, it's obvious that it's not going to be a simple task that can be mastered overnight, but rather, a lifetime of constant effort in order to grow in this area as much as possible. 
And therefore, constant repetition of the same concepts that one might have studied many times before is highly recommended. Because in the world that we live in, most of our experiences are surrounded by things which could be potential deterrents from living a life of emunah. And understandably so - it's supposed to be that way, because again, our purpose in this world is to try find the emunah, and if it wasn't a challenge, then what is our purpose of being here? Without making a conscious effort to be mindful to live according to the values of emunah, one will certainly fall to the normal way of the world, which is certainly not a life according to the values of emunah. And because we are constantly surrounded by things which might attempt to deter us from a life of emunah, we are certainly called on to constantly revise the concepts of emunah and how we are able to apply them in our own lives in a practical way and b'ezrat Hashem, each day, we will thereby be able to be living lives truly according to the values of emunah.

417 - What's Most Important?

We've discussed previously with regards to the famous verse that states ein od milvado - there is nothing else in the world except for Hashem exclusively - and we've discussed that there are many levels to what it means to truly understand and internalize this verse. Simply speaking, if someone were to ask me, "do you believe that Hashem runs the world?" and I am to answer in the affirmative, that certainly is a milestone in having understood to some degree what the verse ein od milvado means.
However, as discussed many times, Torah commentaries point out that the distance between knowing Emunah in our heads, meaning knowing the information, that yes, Hashem does run the world, as opposed to truly internalizing it in our hearts, which will translate into the way we live our lives with real life Emunah, that distance is greater than the distance between heaven and earth, meaning that there are many levels to what it means to have Emunah. Our life's work is of course initially to grow in our knowledge about Emunah, because without knowing what we are trying to internalize, we can't really move forward. But after one has already understood in one's head that our main purpose in this world is in order to grow in our Emunah, the next step is to try internalize that Emunah more and more into the core of our beings, to the point that Emunah does not just remain an abstract concept or subject, but rather translates into the very core of our beings and the way we live our lives.
There is much information available to us about many Torah concepts, from the study of the Chumash itself, Tanach, the Talmud, Halacha, Kabbalistic material, inspiration for character development, and much more. They are all important, and we are certainly encouraged to strive to explore as many areas of Torah as possible. Different people are attracted to different areas of Torah, and although we are all called on to learn all areas of Torah to our best ability, and we should certainly strive to do so, it is nevertheless motivating to remind ourselves about what many Torah commentaries write, that ultimately all the branches of Torah are super important, and again, we should make our maximum effort to explore all the branches of Torah. However, as pointed out by many Torah commentaries, Emunah is not one of the branches, Emunah is the trunk of the tree itself, because when one has Emunah, it automatically leads to all of the branches of the Torah. So whilst it is so vital to explore all the branches of Torah, it is also important to highlight and remind ourselves that the trunk of the tree itself should never be forgotten about, and our highest focus should be placed in not only knowing the concepts of Emunah, but also making our maximum effort in trying to internalize the Emunah in our bones, in a way that it translates to the way that we live our lives. 
"Thank you, Hashem, for the incredible privilege to be able to know about Emunah, and to be able to learn about Emunah, and to have the ability to try make an effort to truly internalize the concepts of Emunah. Hashem, please help me from this moment on to grow more and more in not only knowing the concepts of Emunah, but also truly internalizing and changing the way that I live, to living a life of sincere Emunah."

416 - It's the Same Hashem

The passage in Tanach from Shoftim chapter 16 verse 28 tells how the Prophet Shimshon was blessed with supernatural strength, which made him immune to his enemies. Eventually, however, his enemies, the plishtim, discovered his secret and stripped him of his supernatural strength. Using his own words, Shimshon requested that Hashem please give him the supernatural strength just one final time to take revenge against the plishtim in order to sanctify Hashem's name just one more time. And as the passage tells, Hashem answered Shimshon in His personal prayer. 
There is a well-known Torah teaching which states that ma'aseh avos siman labanim - the narratives recounted in the Torah, are not just mere history lessons, but rather each event has valuable lessons to teach each one of us that we can apply to our lives in a practical way. One obvious take-home from the above account in the episode of Shimshon and the Pelishtim is to regularly reach out to Hashem using our own words. The same Hashem who was present and available to hear and come through for Shimshon in his challenging situation, is the same Hashem who is present today and waiting to hear from every single one of us. 
The Gemara in Yoma 29a states that with regards to prayer, the more one prays, the more effective one's prayers become. It's important to take to heart this teaching of the Gemara, because as we know, tefillah can be disheartening at times, especially when we do not seem to receive what we had prayed for. Sometimes Hashem withholds blessing from us specifically in order to give us reason to keep on praying. Eventually, however, all our prayers come together and will be much more potent and effective than if we had been answered in the first place. Again, our purpose in this world is to have emunah. I don't know, I don't understand. Emunah means, I believe.
The Midrash elsewhere teaches that some prayers take years before they are answered; some prayers take months; some days, and some prayers are answered instantaneously. And the question is, why? And the simple response is, we cannot know Hashem's calculations in this world specifically because we are called on to believe - to have emunah - not to understand and know Hashem's workings. But the one thing is for sure, that no prayer ever goes to waste. And just like we learned from the Gemara above, the more one prays, the more effective one's prayers become, and if I prayed for something, and not only didn't I get answered, but things even seemed to get worse, although logic and a mistaken perspective would dictate, "you see, Hashem is not really listening", however, the emunah perspective would dictate - "even if I don't see Hashem coming through for me, I have no doubt in the world that that prayer that I just made is making a huge impact, and even if the results are not experienced right now, it could be that for whatever reason, Hashem is holding back right now, but in the future, there is no question that this prayer will come through for something of tremendous value."
The book of Yonah relates the fascinating episode when Yonah was swallowed by a large fish and remained inside it for three days and three nights. Whilst inside the fish, Yonah reminded himself that the only thing that could help him out of his predicament was tefillah. He was therefore able to pray to Hashem with true sincerity, even inside the innards of a fish. As mentioned many times, personal prayer was the consistent practice of all of our ancestors. The opportunity of prayer is always accessible and available to every single one of us at any time and at any place. "Thank you so much Hashem for the constant opportunity to be able to reach out to you and have my personal relationship with you."

415 - Where Is Your Home?

We've been discussing how practising our emunah and bitachon, our core purpose and focus in this world, is expressed in one of its highest ways when we talk to Hashem in our own words. Again, for many of us, if we are asked if we believe in Hashem, we would answer in the affirmative. However, when push comes to shove and adversity strikes, there are many levels of how one can respond. The ultimate would be feelings of complete calm and turning to Hashem in prayer to help out. And on the opposite extreme would be someone who doesn't even think about Hashem, but rather just runs around trying to find their own solutions. There are millions of levels in between, and all we are required to do is grow each day to make a little bit more effort to when something does happen, rather than initially running around to try to find our own solutions, first reaching out to Hashem and asking Him to help us in our endeavour to find a solution. 
The Midrash Rabbah in Vezos HaBerachah section 11 states that after it was decreed that Moshe Rabbeinu would not be permitted to enter Eretz Israel, he prayed no fewer than 515 times, beseeching Hashem to annul the decree. And as the verse states, after the 515th prayer, Hashem actually asked Moshe Rabbeinu to stop praying about this matter. And this is because had Moshe Rabbeinu prayed just one more time, Hashem would have been required to fulfill His request. 
Many people would ask, but doesn't Hashem run the world? Hashem calls the shots, and if Hashem desired that Moshe Rabbeinu should not enter Eretz Israel, regardless of how many times he prayed, He would not have entered. And the answer to this question is that Hashem created the world with a rule: Tefillah works. Just like Hashem created the nature of our world, that if you are hungry and you eat food, it satiates the hunger, and if one is tired and sleeps, one feels rejuvenated thereafter, similarly, Hashem created nature in the spiritual worlds, and one segment of how the natural order in the spiritual worlds work, is that emunah, bitachon, and prayer work, to the point that Hashem had to ask Moshe Rabbeinu, "please do not pray again, because if you do, although I do not want you to make your way to Eretz Israel, I will be required to take you in because of your prayers."
Nobody is on the level of Moshe Rabbeinu, and for many people to daven 515 times would be an achievement beyond our maximum capacity, but again, one day when we meet our Creator, we are not going to be asked, how did you do in comparison to Moshe Rabbeinu? We are going to be asked, how did you do in comparison to what you could have become? Every single one of us has the constant opportunity to pray. If we are to internalize the truth of the words, ein od milvado - that Hashem truly orchestrates every single detail in every one of our lives, we will quickly realize that we don't call any of the shots to anything that happens in our lives or in anyone else's lives. Everything is exclusively orchestrated by Hashem. The only thing that truthfully is within our capacity, is our ability to pray and ask Hashem to make things turn out the way we would like, and of course thereafter, to make our maximum effort to make it happen. 
Many individuals have expressed their desire to live in the land of Israel. It is not our time and place now to discuss the benefits of what it means to live in the land of Israel from a halachic or Torah perspective, but assuming that one has decided that ideally they would like to live in the land of Israel, for many people, much of the time it can seem like an absolute impossibility on many fronts, be it because of financial circumstances, family dynamics and many other things. Now again, assuming that one's perspective after investigating the topic is that the right thing ultimately is to be in the land of Israel; One day, when we are to meet our Creator, He is not going to ask us, did you live in the land of Israel? Because again, if I believe ein od milvado - I will quickly realize that I will only live in the country that Hashem will place me in, and I actually have no say in the matter. 
But the question that will be asked is, did you pray to live in the land of Israel? And therefore, for the many people that would like to live in the land of Israel, but see it as an impossibility, the wisest thing that one can do is make it part of one's daily personal prayers to beg Hashem to give one the opportunity to come to live in the land of Israel. And again, even if one sees it as an impossibility, when one takes to heart that Hashem is the Creator and controls every detail of the world and can do absolutely anything, then I will quickly realize that I too can pray for absolutely anything.

414 - One Step Higher

We've been discussing how one of the most basic expressions of emunah and bitachon is to talk to Hashem, and how the opportunity to have a personal relationship with Hashem and talk to Hashem is available to every single one of us, regardless of our levels. Although it might be such a basic fundamental of emunah, that if I believe in Hashem, I know He is there, He can hear me, He can help me, why would I go and make other efforts in place of talking to Hashem? Again, we do have a mitzvah of Hishtadlus, to make our own efforts, and we can talk about that at another opportunity. But regardless of our own efforts, a person with an emunah mindset will certainly devote the majority part of their energy and effort to their relationship with Hashem, to talking to Hashem, because if He is the Creator of the world and He is the One that makes everything happen every moment, is it not logical to reach out to Him to help me, because He can and He just wants me to talk to Him before He sends me the help? 
As opposed to trying to make my own plans and forgetting to reach out to the Creator, which upon contemplation, one will quickly realize is an absolute absurdity. However, it's also important to remind ourselves that because of our human limitations, we often don't feel that inspiration and motivation, and even though we might know the information about emunah, that Hashem is there and does listen, when push comes to shove and we try to talk to Hashem, we feel like we are talking to a wall. And again, that is the whole objective of our existence in this world, to give us a test in our emunah and have the constant struggle every single day, regardless of what I might have learned. Today, I just don't feel it; I'm uninspired, I'm unmotivated. So what then do I do? 
What we've discussed many times is that the answer to all questions always is the opportunity to reach out to Hashem, even about this topic itself. I don't feel inspired about my emunah, my bitachon and my relationship with Hashem. Whatever I am able to say, I should. Perhaps, "Hashem, I really am not feeling that inspiration anymore, for whatever reason. Please can You help me, Hashem, that I should be able to talk to You with true sincerity and mean what I say. And Hashem, even if I'm not feeling it today, I'm asking You, please can You come through for me in the areas that I'm asking You, not just so that I should achieve what I'm trying to achieve, but more importantly, that I can see how You do listen to me and how You do come through for me, because there's been times in my life, Hashem, where I did talk to You, and You came through for me and You answered me, and when that happens, it's a tremendous motivator and inspiration for me to continue to build my relationship with You." 
There are many levels of emunah, and there are many levels of talking to Hashem. Every single one of us has the constant opportunity. All we are called on to do, is to do our best. Rabbeinu Bechaya to Bereshit chapter 46 verse 32 writes that many of our ancestors were shepherds. Hevel, the son of the first man - Adam, was a shepherd; and so were Moshe Rabbeinu, the prophet Shmuel, King Shaul, King David, as well as many others of our righteous ancestors. Rabbeinu Bechaya writes that they specifically chose shepherding as their profession because shepherds spend much of the day in the fields with their flocks, away from other people. And this is conducive to focusing on one's connection and relationship with Hashem, without distraction.
Because of the fast-paced world that we live in, we are all at risk of forgetting to prioritize our relationship with Hashem. Rabbeinu Bechaya here is teaching us that the secret to many of our ancestors' success was that they would seclude themselves at regular intervals. Again, there are many levels. Perhaps for some of our great ancestors, they might have secluded themselves away from other people to be able to just focus on their personal relationship with Hashem for a two-week uninterrupted period or longer. For many of us, that is not something attainable, but certainly, every single day, every one of us has the opportunity to build a personal relationship with Hashem. Every one of us according to our own level. The more we make an effort to build our emunah, the more we will be motivated and inspired to treat our relationship with Hashem and talking to Hashem with highest priority.

413 - Adversity Brings Sincerity

We've been discussing how one of the most basic expressions of applying and practicing our emunah and bitachon, which is our main purpose and focus in this world, as the Torah commentaries outline to us, is the opportunity of talking to Hashem in our own words. We've been discussing some Torah sources, seeing how throughout the ages, right from the beginning all the way through until today, this was always a fundamental practice of the Torah's perspective, the only true perspective, Hashem's perspective. The objective of studying sources such as these is to encourage and motivate ourselves that we too have the exact same opportunity. 
Although on the one hand, many of our ancestors were much greater than anything we could even begin to imagine in comparison to our level, and perhaps many of them were able to spend many hours on a daily basis in real close connection throughout their conversations with Hashem, many of us might not be expected to reach such a level of closeness with Hashem, but certainly we are expected and should capitalize on the opportunity to make our maximum effort within our maximum capacity. Every single one of us can talk to Hashem in our own words, both through good times when things are good thanking Hashem for all the amazing things that He blesses us with, as well as in treating Hashem and asking Him to help us throughout the difficult times that we experience.
The Gemara in Bava Basra 123a states that the first of the twelve tribes was supposed to be born to Rachel Imeinu. However, because of the extended and sincere prayers of Leah, she was privileged to give birth first. The Gemara explains why Leah was able to pray in such a heartfelt and sincere way: It was common in those times for members of extended families to marry one another. Now in the extended family of Avraham Avinu, there were two sisters and two brothers. Yaakov was the younger child, as was Rachel, whereas Eisav was the older one, as was Leah. Everyone was saying that Leah, the older sister, was therefore destined to marry Esav, the older brother. When Leah learned that Eisav was an evil man, she cried and prayed to Hashem that this destiny of hers not come to fruition. Because of this, she was able to pray so sincerely.
When we experience adversity and suffering, much of the time we just can't wait for the next chapter of our life to begin and just want to move out of the space of challenge and suffering. However, when we are able to have the right perspective, it can help us to cope with our challenges in a much better way, as well as capitalize on the opportunity for growth through that ordeal. Adversity is often a vehicle for us to put our full heart and soul into our prayers. Of course we don't ask to experience adversity and suffering, but when it does come, let us capitalize on the opportunity to pray with more sincerity. 
In a similar vein, in Shemos chapter 2, verse 23, the verse depicts the response of the Jewish people when they were subjected to the atrocious treatment of the Egyptians. And as the verse states, "they cried out to Hashem in prayer and their cries ascended to Hashem." Let us remind ourselves that one of the major obstacles that prevents us from calling out to Hashem, which is really such a basic equation if we believe in Hashem, is the lack of sincerity in our belief that Hashem is really listening. As Rav Pincus points out, it is very difficult to talk to a wall for a long period because you know that the wall is not listening. Whereas when we make our maximum effort to try and internalize more and more each day, that when we talk to Hashem, we are not talking to a wall, then it becomes so much easier to talk to Hashem. 
And again, one might feel, but it is hard for me to talk to Hashem. Does that mean that I am on a very low level, that talking to Hashem is not for me? God forbid. Let us remind ourselves that even with regards to a wicked person, we are taught that the opportunity for emunah and bitachon is available to every single human being. If our maximum capacity is to say, "Hashem, I want to believe in You, but I actually feel like I am kind of talking to a wall, please can You help me to see how You come through for me in my life, Hashem. Please show me how really it is You who is always orchestrating all the details of my life. And please can You send me some of those moments where I am inspired and motivated because I see how You are coming through for me in my life, and how the prayers that I make are actually making a difference. Thank You, Hashem, for the tremendous opportunity to have a personal relationship with You and be able to talk with You every single day."

412 - I Love You!

One of the six constant mitzvahs is the mitzvah to love HaShem. It is difficult sometimes to fulfill this mitzvah of loving HaShem because I don't see HaShem, I don't hear HaShem and in many ways it's hard for me to relate to HaShem - this abstract figure. How do I come to loving HaShem? 
The Rambam writes that the way we come to loving HaShem is by taking note of the things that He has created and admiring them and doing so will bring us to loving the Creator, the One who created all those things. As we've previously discussed, when one's approach towards HaShem is one of "You owe me", then of course we do not particularly feel grateful for the blessings that He sends us and why should we feel reason to love Him. Whereas when one lives the emunah approach and one internalizes, HaShem doesn't owe me anything and if I take note at the countless blessings in my life and internalize that each one of them is actually a gift from HaShem. When someone gives you a gift, you appreciate it and when they give you enough gifts just for no reason at all, just because they love you, that certainly is an incentive to love them back. 
"Thank you HaShem for all the tremendous gifts that You've given me. Let's start with my eyes, because we've just learned that one of the ways that I can come to love You is by taking note, appreciating and admiring Your creations. By having given me eyes, HaShem, You have now enabled me to be able to see and take note and appreciate and admire Your incredible creations. Be it a beautiful sunset, the countless stars in the sky, the many animals that You've created with such great wisdom, all the many miracles that exist in a human being, which I see so many of. Thank you HaShem for these incredible eyes to be able to see Your incredible creations and thereby come to love You.
HaShem, thank You so much for all the incredible gifts that You've given me. The fact that I can hear is not something You owe me. What a gift to be able to hear with these ears that You've given me and thereby be able to have a conversation and a relationship with another human being.
You know HaShem, I would like to imagine for myself for a moment that I cannot hear, and I experienced many years being deaf, and suddenly You come and offer me a gift where I will be able to hear. In that situation, if I was able to, I would come and hug and kiss You for such a tremendous gift. The truth of the matter is that You've given me a greater gift than that, because You created me that right from the time I was born I didn't even have to suffer one day without hearing.
HaShem, You have taught us Your perspective in many Torah sources that one of the most severe transgressions is to talk loshan hara and gossip about other people. And just as severe as it is to talk lashon hara is the transgression of listening to somebody else talk lashon hara. Now if You wanted to, You could have created a world where loshan hara didn't exist. But in Your great kindness, You gave me the opportunity to earn my place in the next world to enjoy Your goodness eternally. Thank You HaShem for giving me ears where I do have the ability to potentially listen to lashon hara, and I now have the choice to opt not to listen to the lashon hara that is being spoken, whereby I would be performing one of the greatest mitzvahs that can exist. And if I didn't have ears and the ability to hear, I would not be able to perform this mitzvah. Please HaShem help me not to be ungrateful, but rather to notice all the tremendous gifts that You give me, and thereby sincerely be able to say to You, I love You HaShem."

411 - Ripple Effect

We've been discussing the idea that Torah commentaries bring, that an extension of emunah - believing in Hashem, is to believe in ourselves. If Hashem believes in me, not only do I have the license to believe in myself, but I am obligated to believe in myself, because if I neglect to do so, I am in a sense denying Hashem's will. True humility does not mean to deny the truth. If Hashem made me a good businessman and I am doing my best to use my talents in service of Hashem, really trying to work hard and use the money for good causes, if I am complimented that I am a good businessman and trying to be humble, I deny that fact - that is not humility - that is just speaking words of untruth. And in a similar vein, if you know yourself to be a kind and warm individual, and when complimented on how nice it is to see someone so warm and kind, one denies that fact, again that is not humility, that is just speaking words of untruth.
Some commentaries explain that true humility means, when I am able to write about myself, "I am the humblest of all men." What exactly does this mean? We know that a verse in the Torah which Moshe Rabbeinu wrote himself states, "I, Moshe Rabbeinu, am the humblest of all men." And when Hashem told him to write so, he did not argue with Hashem and say, Hashem let's leave this line out of the Torah. And the commentaries explain, because Moshe Rabbeinu was a man of truth, he knew that he was the humblest man that will ever exist and therefore he was able to write that verse down. But at the same time, he was able to attribute his successes, talents and abilities, not to his own doing, but completely relating it to the gifts that Hashem has given him. If I am able to realize that any talent I might have is a gift from Hashem, and not because of my own cunning and doing, I am then able to acknowledge my talents and gifts that Hashem has given me, and believe in myself and use them to the highest degree, whilst at the same time never falling to arrogance, believing that it is only because of my cunning and doing that I am successful in these areas, God forbid, but only because Hashem has given me these gifts. 
Let us remind ourselves that any and every deed that we might perform has ripple effects beyond anything we can imagine. Firstly, in this world, we do not see the spiritual effects of our actions and if we do a mitzvah, from the smallest to the biggest mitzvah, perhaps giving one coin to charity, giving somebody a smile, learning Torah for 30 seconds, saying a short prayer, to doing these mitzvos in their ideal manner, such as giving a large amount of tzedakah, or learning Torah for a long period, or making a long prayer; if we are able to humble ourselves to believe that we do not understand and we do not see in this world the impact of our actions, and when we perform a mitzvah there are spiritual worlds being affected to degrees way beyond anything in this world can be affected, then we will certainly be motivated to realize that we should believe in ourselves and we can make a huge difference. 
Sometimes Hashem does decide to show us a little bit of inspiration, again to motivate us. Let's say a person decides to give a relatively small amount to charity. I decide to give $18 for a certain cause because this is what I can afford in this particular situation. But in passing, when I tell somebody else about this cause and how I donated to it, they decide that they are going to donate $1,800 to this cause on a monthly basis. I might never find out that the ripple effect of me giving my little one-time tzedakah affected many thousands of dollars being donated to this cause. Sometimes we do experience where an individual will approach one and tell them how the effect of their mitzvah had a tremendous ripple effect on them. "Thank you Hashem for teaching me that my main purpose in this world is to develop my emunah, ultimately trusting in You, and by extension, in the words of the sages, and extending it one step further, to believe in myself."

410 - Terrorist Attack

We've been discussing how Torah commentaries bring that one of the extensions of what it means to have emunah in Hashem is to believe in myself. If Hashem believes in me to the extent that He blessed me with certain abilities and talents, so certainly following the path of emunah and believing in Hashem, I am called on to always in any endeavor reach out to Hashem and ask Him to bring me success, and thereafter believe in myself that I can do it.
Let us remind ourselves that the whole purpose of this world is emunah, specifically to believe when I don't see. Just like I can't see Hashem, but I am called on to live a life where everything revolves around Hashem, even though I can't see Him, again based on emunah, based on belief, similarly, when it comes to my actions, I am not allowed to see the true effect of those actions in this world, because again if I was able to see the true spiritual impact of my actions, that would not be emunah anymore. 
When I give a coin to charity, I don't see any particular change in the world. When I give somebody a smile, learn a word of Torah, make a prayer, or any one of the many mitzvos that we have, much of the time we might not even feel any inspiration or change whatsoever, and that being the case, without building our faith in Hashem, our faith in ourselves that we are making a difference, a huge difference, bigger than anything we can imagine in this world, we will not be motivated to the correct degree. Many Torah commentaries outline this idea as a basic fundamental principle to the Torah. 
One of many stories that some of the Torah greats tell is the following. There was an individual who passed away, and when he came to the heavenly court, as we know, there is a heavenly accounting, and of course these are spiritual ideas, but to put it in terms that we can understand, a whole lot of white angels appeared corresponding to the mitzvos that this person fulfilled. And thereafter he saw some black angels coming, corresponding to the sins committed in this world. And slowly but surely, the side of the scale with the black angels started to get heavier and heavier, and eventually outweighed the white angels. And the man was panicking, because when the scorecard is such that there are more black angels than white, that means trouble. 
And suddenly, from far, again in our terms, just to give us a little bit of an understanding within the vocabulary we use, the man noticed that a huge bus was approaching, and soon the bus joined the white angels on their side of the scale. And the scale completely tipped in favor of the white angels - of the mitzvos. And the man was ecstatic, and when he asked for an explanation, he was told that this huge bus was filled with white angels. And even though he could not see how these mitzvos were related to him, they explained to him that there was just one time in his life where he had an opportunity to view something inappropriate, and because he fulfilled the tremendous mitzvah of guarding his eyes, as opposed to committing the sin of viewing something inappropriate, in the merit of that, Hashem decreed that a certain terrorist attack that was supposed to take place in another city, against an entire bus full of Jewish people, was saved due to His one action. And therefore, the merit of all the mitzvos that these people did throughout their lives came to help Him to outweigh the aveira on His scorecard. 
We have no concept of what it means to do a mitzvah, and likewise to do an aveira. We are taught that when a person does a mitzvah, we create spiritual worlds beyond anything we can even imagine can be encompassed within this world, and likewise with regards to the negative effect of our aveiros. What a privilege we have to view the world from the true lens of Emunah, not based on our understanding, which so much of the time can be misleading and mistaken, but rather from the true perspective, Hashem's perspective, which as discussed many times, is portrayed to us throughout the vast amount of information that we have through the Torah commentaries and leaders that Hashem has given us - Emunah.